2018 Singapore-Thailand Drive – The Last Leg with my Concluding Thoughts

Day 21 – Putrajaya to Singapore

No regrets, and we would totally do it all again…

All good things must come to an end. 22 days on the road and we have now come full circle. Reluctantly, we make our final leg back home to Singapore.

Over the past 3 weeks, our car has served us well, giving us a great ride through sun and rain, through smooth roads and pot-hole ridden country roads. We decide to give our beloved car a treat at the Melaka BHP Station. With a good wash, wax and polish, our car looks as good as new! The kids love the ride through the machine wash as well, which we don’t see in Singapore any more. For them, it is almost akin to a ride at the amusement park!

As we continue on our journey, we meet with some heavy traffic caused by some traffic accidents.

Dangers of the Road

Sometimes it is easy to take for granted the dangers that are ever-present on these road trips. In our years of driving, we have come across our fair share of incidents, especially when the roads are wet. Thankfully, we have never been in a crash of our own. Long may that continue.

In my younger days as a passenger on a road trip around Iceland, I had been involved in a crash which involved a 360 degree flip of our rented car. Thankfully, no one was hurt in that dramatic tumble, but we had to abandon our car and figure out how to get our way back around the island. That memory has stuck in my mind ever since and I always tell myself that I need to be extra watchful on the roads, especially with the safety of my loved ones in my hands.

This recent video from a subsequent road trip into Malaysia shows a truck crash that we came across along the North-South Expressway. It was left on its side, blocking up all but one of the lanes on the expressway with shattered glass spewed all over the road.

Finally Home

We reach the Causeway to face more congestion. Always get your kids to take a final pit stop at the restroom before approaching the Causeway. It’s tough being stuck in a jam like this with your kids telling you again and again how much they need to go to the toilet.

Final score: 4377 kilometres traveled, at an average speed of 67km/h, 21 days on the road, 1 driver, 3 kids in tow. We drove from Singapore to Bangkok and beyond, and we made it back safely in one piece. Extremely grateful…

Concluding Thoughts

It was one wild ride. So many sights, so many memories. After a drive like this, there are always so many conflicting thoughts in my mind. How did we do it? Would we do it again? Can we go even further the next time? No way! But what fun it was…

A total of 20 blog posts written in this series, and yet I can only give you readers a small taste of what the journey was like.

Sometimes it was really tough on the kids, being stuck in the car for long hours. It is not easy to keep everybody sane and entertained. We managed, we sang, we argued, we talked, we laughed… all part and parcel of being a family. Good or bad, we did things together.

Once all my thoughts and emotions have settled, I can only say: no regrets, and we would totally do it all again…

Where should we explore on our next epic Thailand drive? My heart says, “Target, Chiang Mai…”, but then my head says, “That’s a 5000km round trip, are you crazy?”

*NOTE: To read about my 2019 Singapore – Thailand Drive, click HERE!

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